Here’s the story behind Lady London’s start in rap

Bronx native Lady London didn’t always have dreams of being a rapper. 

Although she recently dropped off her debut album, S.O.U.L., and scored a Billboard spread about it, a career in hip-hop is something that sort of happened out the blue for the rising star. 

“I got my Bachelor of Science at Howard University … in sports medicine and chemistry,” she told BuzzFeed’s Cocoa Butter. She later embarked on a master’s degree in medicine at the University of Southern California.

London’s life and career took an unexpected turn after she dropped a poetry video online, which garnered over 8.7 million views, she said.

The week following the video’s release, she was offered two record deals. 

“I had no idea what they were talking about because I did not rap. I did not do music. To my knowledge, I was just doing poetry,” she said.

London revealed she spent three months learning how to rap. During that time, she developed “Lady Londays” where she’d release freestyles online every Monday.

The 28-year-old grew her fanbase from 9,500 people to over 1 million followers. 

Of her fast-growing hip-hop career, London said, “Consistency is key.”